It is known to use plastic foam containers to hold food, drinks, or other substances. Conventional foam containers are generally inexpensive and have insulating properties. Conventional beverage containers may also be made of plastics.
Typical containers can leak substances, such as food or liquids, contained within. In some conventional containers, the substance may react with the container, causing the container to break down and leak the substance.
Furthermore, companies wish to advertise their product on the outer surface of the container. However, conventional foams or expanded polystyrene (EPS) containers do not receive and/or retain printed media clearly or effectively. The printed media may not adhere well to the outer surface or may not attach at all.
Some conventional containers have attempted to manufacture a foam cup with a plastic layer or film as a label. The plastic film may improve printability, but requires additional materials and amounts of materials, which can increase the cost associated with the materials as well as manufacturing time. Traditional labeling devices suffer from certain limitations. For example, it is often complicated to apply labels to foam containers with conical surfaces, such as cups. It is particularly difficult to cover substantially the entire outer surface of such a container, such as the entire outer wall of a cup.
An example of a conventional container is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,811,843 (“the '843 patent”). In the '843 patent, a seam is formed in the plastic layers forming the container. Another example of a conventional container is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,943,459 (“the '459 patent”). In the '459 patent, only a foamed plastic is used that is formed by a sheet. Such a method is known to be difficult to form a container that is drawable and, further, the plastic container formed by the '459 patent would have a seam.
It is therefore desirable to provide a container and a method of making the container that has good insulating properties, uses less expensive materials and is capable of having a printable surface across the entire outer surface of the container.